CIE iGCSE Co-Ordinated Science B18.2 Food chains and food webs Exam Style Questions Paper 1
Question
Dung beetles lay their eggs in the faeces of plant-eating mammals like buffalo. Both the adult beetles and their young stages eat the undigested food in the faeces. Which diagram shows this food relationship?
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: D
Explanation: The correct food relationship is grass (producer) → buffalo (primary consumer) → dung beetles (secondary consumer). The dung beetles feed on the undigested food in the buffalo’s faeces.
Question
A producer is an organism which makes its own organic nutrients.
Which process does a producer use and what is the source of energy?
A. photosynthesis, dead organic matter
B. respiration, sunlight
C. photosynthesis, sunlight
D. respiration, dead organic matter
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: C. photosynthesis, sunlight
Explanation: Producers, such as plants, use photosynthesis to convert sunlight into chemical energy stored in organic nutrients like glucose. Respiration is a process used by all organisms to release energy from organic nutrients, but it is not the process by which producers make their own nutrients.
Question
Which organism is a secondary consumer in the food chain shown?
plant → herbivore → carnivore → top carnivore
A) plant
B) herbivore
C) carnivore
D) top carnivore
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: C) carnivore
Explanation: In the given food chain, the plant is the producer, the herbivore is the primary consumer, the carnivore is the secondary consumer, and the top carnivore is the tertiary consumer.
Question
The diagram shows a food chain.
grass → gazelle → lion
Which position does the lion occupy in the food chain?
A primary consumer
B producer
C secondary consumer
D tertiary consumer
▶Answer/Explanation
Answer: C
Explanation: In the food chain, grass is the producer, gazelle is the primary consumer (herbivore), and the lion is the secondary consumer (carnivore). The lion feeds on the gazelle, which feeds on the grass.
Question
The diagram shows a food chain.
beech tree insect shrew owl
Which statement is correct?
A The beech tree is a consumer.
B The insect is a producer.
C The owl is a carnivore.
D The shrew is a herbivore
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans :C
Question
The diagram shows a food chain.
dandelion plant → slug → blackbird → fox
Which organisms are consumers?
A dandelion plant only
B fox only
C blackbird and slug only
D slug, blackbird and fox
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans :A
Question
Which organisms can be described as producers and herbivores in the food chain shown?
diatoms → copepods → amphipods
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans : D
Question
What is a carnivore?
(A) an organism that gets its energy by eating animals
(B) an organism that gets its energy by eating plants
(C) an organism that gets its energy from dead matter
(D) an organism that makes its own organic matter
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans: A
Question
What is a producer in a food web?
(A) an organism that gets its energy by digesting plants
(B) an organism that makes its own food using light energy
(C) an organism that obtains energy from digested animals
(D) an organism that gets its energy from dead or waste organic matter
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans: B
Question
Which type of organism gets its energy from the remains of dead organisms or other organic waste?
(A) a carnivore
(B) a decomposer
(C) a herbivore
(D) a producer
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans : B
Question
The diagram shows a food chain.
grass → rabbit → fox → flea
Which statement is correct?
A The grass is a primary consumer.
B The rabbit is a secondary consumer.
C The fox is a tertiary consumer.
D The flea is a tertiary consumer.
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans : D
Question
The diagram shows a food chain.
Which is the producer?
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans : B
Question
How do herbivores get their energy?
(A) by eating animals and plants
(B) by eating animals only
(C) by eating plants only
(D) directly from sunlight
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans : C
Question
The diagram shows a food chain.
mahogany tree → caterpillar → songbird → hawk
What is the mahogany tree in this food chain?
(A) carnivore
(B) consumer
(C) herbivore
(D) producer
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans: D
Question
Which type of organism gets its energy from breaking down dead or waste organic matter?
(A) carnivore
(B) consumer
(C) decomposer
(D) producer
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans: C
Question
In a food chain, what do all living organisms get from their food?
(A) a supply of water
(B) oxygen for respiration
(C) protection from disease
(D) the energy they need
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans : D
Question
The diagram shows a food web.
Which animals are carnivores?
(A) kingfishers, perch and water beetles
(B) kingfishers only
(C) perch and water beetles only
(D) tadpoles and freshwater shrimp
▶Answer/Explanation
Ans : A
Question
A food chain is shown.
plant → insect → songbird → hawk
Which statements are correct?
1. The hawk is a consumer.
2. The insect is a carnivore.
3. The songbird is a herbivore.
4. The plant is a producer.
(A) 1 and 2 (B) 1 and 4 (C) 2 and 3 (D) 2 and 4
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans: B
Solution:
- The hawk is a consumer:
- Correct. The hawk eats the songbird, so it is a consumer (specifically, a tertiary consumer in this food chain).
- The insect is a carnivore:
- Incorrect. The insect eats the plant, so it is a herbivore (primary consumer), not a carnivore.
- The songbird is a herbivore:
- Incorrect. The songbird eats the insect, so it is a carnivore (secondary consumer), not a herbivore.
- The plant is a producer:
- Correct. The plant produces its own food through photosynthesis, so it is a producer.
Correct Answer:
(B) 1 and 4
- Statement 1 (The hawk is a consumer) and Statement 4 (The plant is a producer) are correct.
Question
Which statement about organisms in a food chain is correct?
(A) A carnivore is an organism that gets its energy by eating plants.
(B) A consumer is an organism that gets its energy by eating other organisms.
(C) A herbivore is an organism that gets its energy by eating animals.
(D) A producer is an organism that gets its energy from dead or waste matter.
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans: B
Question
Three food tests are carried out on a sample of food. The results are shown.
From these results, which nutrient is in the food?
(A) reducing sugar
(B) protein
(C) starch
(D) fat
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans: C
Question
What is the correct order for the food chain from the information given?
● beetles are herbivores
● mice eat the beetles
● owls are the tertiary consumers
● the leaves of a plant are the producer
(A) beetles → mice → owl → leaves
(B) leaves → beetles → mice → owl
(C) leaves → beetles → owl → mice
(D) owl → mice → beetles →leaves
▶️Answer/Explanation
Ans: B
Question
The diagram shows a food web.
How many organisms act as secondary consumers in this food web?
A. 2
B. 3
C. 4
D. 6
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: C. 4
Explanation: Secondary consumers are organisms that feed on primary consumers. In the given food web, the secondary consumers are the fox, snake, lizard, and hawk. Therefore, there are 4 secondary consumers.
Question
The diagram shows a food chain.
grass → rabbit → fox → flea
Which statement is correct?
A. The grass is a primary consumer.
B. The rabbit is a secondary consumer.
C. The fox is a tertiary consumer.
D. The flea is a tertiary consumer.
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: D. The flea is a tertiary consumer.
Explanation: In this food chain, the grass is the producer, the rabbit is the primary consumer, the fox is the secondary consumer, and the flea is the tertiary consumer as it feeds on the fox.
Question
Which type of organism gets its energy from dead or waste organic matter?
A) carnivore
B) consumer
C) decomposer
D) producer
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: C) decomposer
Explanation: Decomposers, such as fungi and bacteria, break down dead or waste organic matter and recycle nutrients back into the ecosystem. Carnivores eat other animals, consumers eat other organisms, and producers (like plants) make their own food through photosynthesis.
Question
Which description of a producer is correct?
A. an organism producing food by eating other creatures
B. an organism that gets its energy by eating plants
C. an organism that gets its energy from dead or waste organic matter
D. an organism that is able to make its own organic nutrients
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: D. an organism that is able to make its own organic nutrients
Explanation: Producers, such as plants, are organisms that can produce their own organic nutrients through photosynthesis. They form the base of the food chain by converting sunlight into energy that other organisms can use.
Question
The flow chart shows part of a food chain: grass → rabbit → fox. What describes the rabbit?
A. consumer and carnivore
B. consumer and herbivore
C. producer and carnivore
D. producer and herbivore
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: B. consumer and herbivore
Explanation: The rabbit is a consumer because it eats grass (a producer). It is also a herbivore because it feeds on plants.
Question
Which organism gets its energy from dead or waste organic matter?
A. carnivore
B. decomposer
C. herbivore
D. omnivore
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: B
Explanation: Decomposers are organisms that break down dead or waste organic matter, such as dead plants and animals, and recycle nutrients back into the ecosystem. Carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores obtain their energy by consuming other living organisms, not from decomposing matter.
Question
The diagram shows a food chain.
grass → grasshopper → frog → snake → buzzard
Which is correct?
A. The buzzard is a producer.
B. The frog is a primary consumer.
C. The grasshopper is a secondary consumer.
D. The snake is a tertiary consumer.
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: D. The snake is a tertiary consumer.
Explanation: In the food chain grass → grasshopper → frog → snake → buzzard, the snake is a tertiary consumer because it feeds on the frog, which is a secondary consumer.
Question
Which statement about how organisms get their energy is not correct?
| organism | source of energy | |
|---|---|---|
| A | carnivores | animals |
| B | decomposers | dead plants |
| C | green plants | minerals |
| D | herbivores | plants |
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: C. green plants
Explanation: Green plants obtain their energy from sunlight through photosynthesis, not from minerals. Minerals are used for growth and development, but they are not a source of energy.
Question
The diagram shows some of the processes in the carbon cycle. Which process is respiration?
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: D
Explanation: Respiration by microorganisms releases carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere.
Question
In a food chain, what do all living organisms get from their food?
A. a supply of water
B. oxygen for respiration
C. protection from disease
D. the energy they need
▶️Answer/Explanation
Answer: D
Explanation: All living organisms obtain energy from their food. This energy is used for various life processes, such as growth, reproduction, and maintaining bodily functions.